h of the
other months; the Ides on the fifteenth of March, May, July and October
and on the thirteenth of the rest.

D. THE LEGION

The legion, always the largest fighting unit of the Roman armies,
corresponded most nearly to our regiment, but had also features of our
brigade. It was always rostered as of 6,000 men, all told. But the causes
which operate in all armies brought it about that a legion in the field
had usually about 5,000 men. It was divided into sixty bodies resembling
our companies, called centuries, because nominally of 100 men, each
commanded by a centurion. The Roman army never, like ours, had tiering
grades of officers; it always, theoretically, consisted of soldiers,
centurions and the commander: other officers were additional and special.
Each centurion chose from among his men an _optio_, to assist him and to
take his place if killed. These _optiones_ corresponded most nearly to our
corporals, but their duties and authority were always very vague. The
centurions corresponded to our sergeants, in that they were picked men
from the ranks, but they had all the duties and powers of our lieutenants
and, some of them, of much higher officers. Three centuries made up a
maniple, more or less like one of our battalions, each commanded by its
senior centurion. Two maniples made up a cohort, also commanded by its
senior centurion, and the ten centurions commanding cohorts were the
actual officers of the legion, its head centurion an officer of great
importance.

True, a _tribunus militum_ (tribune of the soldiers) was attached to each
cohort; but he did more advising than commanding, though, in theory, he
represented the general. The tribunes answered to our captains. Under the
Empire each legion was commanded by a _legatus_, who also represented the
general in his absence. Such an officer corresponded most nearly to our
colonel, but had many of the characteristics of a brigadier-general.

E. "_Ubi tu Caius, ego Caia._"

These words, never varied whatever the names of the bride and groom, were
the kernel of the Roman wedding ritual and after their utterance the bride
was a wife. They correspond to the "I do" and "love, honor and obey" of
our customary marriage formulas. As Caius and Caia were far and away the
most frequent names among the Romans the phrase might be rendered: "Where
you are Jack, I'm Jill."

No English words convey precisely the mingling of banter, and earnestness,
of archness, devo